Weather and Traffic

Some island eateries’ specialties are just what forecast cold snap calls for

Early every morning (except Sundays) in a tucked-away Via Demario café loyalists consider a best-kept secret, prep begins with what’ll yield warm deliciousness. It’s a type of comfort fare that’ll be in demand as a cold snap is forecast to hit this weekend.

That’s because soup is a specialty at Cafe Delamar, a cozy and quaint little kitchen-and-counter spot along Via DeMario at 326 Peruvian Ave., #4. It might be a surprise to some folks, but the café, which is mostly takeout although there are a few spots to sit, has been here for more than 25 years.

Every day at Café Delamar, there is a soup special, prepared that morning by a cook extraordinaire. “Morna (Ramcharran) has been here for 20 years and is the heart of the food here,” says manager France Charron.

Daily soups at Café Delamar, which also features sandwiches and salads, among other things, run the gamut—from curry vegetable to Portobello mushroom, broccoli with Gouda and more. There’s always one soup special a day, $3.95 a cup and $4.95 a bowl.

“We make enough soup every day for around 20 or 25 bowls and we always sell out,” says Charron.

The forecast cold front is expected to keep temps chilly through round Tuesday, so where else to go for a bowl of warm and tasty spoonfuls?

Among other places, perhaps Ta-boo, 220 Worth Ave., for its house specialty black-bean chili, or Charley’s Crab, 456 S. Ocean Blvd., where seafood chowders include a “Charley”—as in the ocean-view restaurant’s Mediterranean “Charley’s” fish chowder ($8).

Surfside Diner, 314 S. County Road, features a soup special each daily—from chicken fajita soup to clam chowder (usually $3.95 cup; $4.95 bowl). The diner’s roasted tomato soup is a house favorite.